The Dr. Edward Leitão Memorial Scholarship Fund will award four scholarships totaling $4,500 to Portuguese-American students Madalena Cardoso, Miranda Melo, Sandra Sousa, and Victoria DaSilva, according to Dr. Helena Santos-Martins, Chair of the Dr. Leitão Memorial Scholarship Fund Committee. The scholarships will be presented at an Awards and Fundraising Luncheon on January 27, 2019, at 1 PM at Filarmónica de Stº António, on 575 Cambridge Street, Cambridge, MA.

Lisbon-born Madalena Cardoso is a sophomore at Boston University majoring in Biology with a specialization in Cell Biology, Molecular Biology and Genetics, and minoring in English. “My ultimate goal is to use my bilingual skills to remove language barriers because when patients and doctors speak the same language, deeper connections arise and better treatments can be provided,” said Cardoso.

Miranda Melo, a Portuguese-American raised in Lowell, Massachusetts, is currently on her third year of the accelerated nursing program at the University of Massachusetts-Lowell. “I hope to obtain a career in the pediatric field of nursing. Working with children with complex living conditions has always been a goal of mine, as I see myself as someone who is drawn to help others,” said the student.

Sandra Sousa, a nursing student at Middlesex Community College, is a Portuguese-American born to Azorean immigrants in Lowell. “I have worked in the healthcare field for many years as a medical assistant,” said Sousa. “The Portuguese patients that I have helped over the years are always so thankful and appreciative of my help. There is truly no better way of giving back.”

Victoria DaSilva is a high school senior at Austin Prep in Reading, Massachusetts, who plans to enroll into a pre-medical college program in the fall of 2019. “I have dreamed for many years of becoming a doctor, and now more than ever, I strive not only to be a doctor, but a leader for the community,” said DaSilva.

The Dr. Edward Leitão Memorial Scholarship Fund, fiscally managed by the Massachusetts Alliance of Portuguese Speakers (MAPS), was created in 2015 in the name of the well-respected and beloved physician, who passed away that year. It aims to fill the urgent need for more Portuguese-American medical professionals in the Portuguese-speaking communities of New England. For more info and to donate to the Scholarship Fund, please visit http://www.drleitaoscholarshipfund.org. All donations are tax-deductible.

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